Air-bag and salvage method for raising sunken vessels and other objects



A. RYAN.

MB BAG AND SALVAGE METHOD FORRAISING SUNKEN VESSELS AND OTHER OBJECTS.

APPLICATION HLEp AUG.6, 1920.

1,364,646. 1 Patented Jan. 4, 1921-.

SHEET 1- A. RYAN.

' AIR BAG AND SALVAGE METHOD FOR RAISING SUNKE N VESSE'LS AND OTHER OBJECTS.

' APPLICATION FILED AUG.6. I920.

1,364,646. PateIited Ja11. 4,1921.'

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2- UNITED STATES TENT OFFICE.

ALFRED-RYAN,.OF .OLDHQIVI, EN GLA-IED, I-. SESI (E JSI'OR TO VEGKERS LIMITED,:QF WEST- MINSI ER, LONDON, ENGLAND.

AIR-BAG 'AND SALVAGE .METHOD FOR RAISING SUNKEN' vEssELs AND OTHER OBJECTS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 4, 1921.

Application filed August 6, 1920. Serial No. 401,760.

T 0 all to item it may concern Be. it known that I, ALFRE RYAN, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at 43 Cranbrook street, Oldham, in the county of Lancaster, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements Relating. to Air-Bags and Salvage Methods airbags areusually loweredin a deflated condition .to therequired depth from a surface vessel or buoy, andlifting cables connected tothe aforesaid network or to rigging attached thereto. are connected to the vessel by divers at any convenient position thereon, for example to attached brackets or to such parts as the bilge keel, port holes, etc., or they may be connected to salvage cables locatedbeneath the vessel, the bags being thereafterfilled with compressed air or gas through pipes from a source of supply on the surface such as a salvage vessel.

The object of the-present invention is to improve-the construction of the gas or air bags which are employed in carrying out methods of the aforesaid kind.

According to one feature of the invention the wires or cables constituting the. network are disposed around the bag approximately along-the lines of maximum or principal stress on the bag and'the network of wires is attached to a system of .cable rigging which in turn is attached to the lifting cable or cables so that the load is distributed equally over the surface of the bagand from the bag to the lifting cables during .the lifting operation.

According to another feature of the invention one or more plies of the fabric composing the bag are preferably laid diagonally or biased in relation to theother plies. :with:--the-object of resisting stresses without serious distortionofthe-fabric and also mak- According to another feature of the 'invention the bags may be doped with a cellulose ester or similar substance to render the fabric more capable of resisting the action of sea-water.

According to another feature of the invention and in orderthat the bags may not be subjected to excessive stress, one or more blow-off or safety valves may also be provided which operate automatically .in such a manner that the internal pressure at the bottom of the bag does not exceed that of the water outside the bag at this place; that is to say that as the difference of pressure be tween the air in the bag and the water outside at the same level is proportional to the height above some datum level, it is possible, by placing the valve at a certain height above the bottom of the bag and setting the spring to secure that the pressure at the bottom of the bag need never exceedzero. Owing to this arrangement the valve will open when the difference of pressure between the air in the bag and the pressure prevailing outside the bag at the particular level at which the valve is situated is equal to or less than that due to the height of the valve above the bottom of the bag.

Internal ballonnets, water-bags or partitions may be fitted to the air bags as an additional control or safety devices against bursting.

In order that the said invention may be clearly understood and readily carried into effect the same will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings in which Figure l is an elevation and Fig. 2 is an end view of a gas or air bag together with part of the network for inclosing-the same the overall height of the bag in the example shown being 15 feet and the net lift thereof 50 tons. In these figures the original shape of the bag is shown in dotted lines and the shape of the bag when the load is applied thereto in full lines.

Figs. 3 and 4 are an elevation and an end view respectively showing a slightly modified construction of gas bag and Figs. 5, and 6 illustrate a detail hereinafter -more particularly referred to. In Fig. 4 the easings or covering channels hereinafter referred to have been omitted for' thesake of clearness.

A is one of the gas bags which is of ovoid form and composed of textile material. B, B (Figs. 1 and 2) and B (Figs. 8 and 1) are the blow-off or release valves. In the example shown at F igs- 1 and 2 the bottom valve B is set to blow off at 0.3 lbs. per square inch and the top valve at 5 lbs. the 0.3 lbs. on the bottom valve being merely for the purpose of insuring contact with the valve seat. In the example shown at Figs. 3 and 4: the valve B is located one foot nine inches above the bottom of the bag and the valve spring is set to blow off at 0.75 lbs. to the square inch. Owing to either of these arrangements the top valve B or the intermediate valve-l3 is adapted to operate in such a manner that the internal pressure at.

the bottom of the bag will not exceed that of the water outside the bag at that place. C is the filling connection or inletvalve of the non-return or other type which is connected to an air tube (not shown) for inflation purposes, the upper end of the air tube being connected to an air compressor on the salvage vessel or other source. D, D are end caps on the gas bag The letter F denotes generally the reinforcing and load distributing members consisting of a plurality of wire ropes or cables 7 f which are arranged circumferentially around the bag along the lines of maximum or principal stress. As shown by the drawings (see Figs. 1 and 3) one or more of these ropes or cables 7 extends around the bag at right angles to the longitudinal axis thereof, the remainder extending at progressively lessening angles thereto.

To prevent lateral movement of the wire ropes or cables f, f, comprising the network or rigging bands F they are inclosed within casings or covering channels 1, 7, (Figs. 3, 4, 5, and 6) composed of fabric, which channels are secured to the bag A. In Fig. 1 single wires or cables are shown and in this view the channels are omitted for the sake of clearness while in the example shown at F igs. 3, at, 5, and 6 a pair of cables is provided and located side by side within each of the said channels 7, f. f is a rubbered fabric tube which is whipped on to the cables f, f and solutioned to the bag it and channels 7", f. The wire ropes or cables 7", f are disposed along the lines of maximum or principal stress on the bag that is to say in approximately the positions shown at Figs. 1, 3, 4i, 5 and 6 and are retained. in place by the aforesaid casings or channels. As single wires or cables of smaller gage are employed in the example shown at Fig. 1 they are arranged more closely together than is shown at Figs 3, 4., 5, and 6, where pairs of wires or cables are provided of somewhat heavier gage- G, G are the lifting cables (Fig. 1) which are attached by means of hooks G, G (Figs.

8 and l) to the cable rigging H, the construction and arrangement of the cable rigging being shown more clearly at Figs. 3 and 4. The network F and the cable rigging H are preferably composed of galvanized or tinned high tensile steel wire rope.

K, K (Figs. 3 and 41) are drain taps or valves disposed respectively at the top and bottom of the bag A. L, (shown in dotted lines at Fig. 3) is a chafing apron to prevent damage to the bag A to assist in the manipulation of the bag before and after inflation. M, M are patches-and M, M sus pension patches provided on the bag A.

The bag is preferably made of multiply fabric, one or more of the piles of which are laid diagonally or biased with relation to the other plies, in order to resist stresses without serious distortion of the bag and to make the fabric capable of resisting tearing action in the event of the bag being daniaged. The outer surface of the bag may be doped or coated with a cellulose ester for the purpose of rendering the same water proof.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is 1. For use in carrying out methods of raising sunken vessels of the kind set forth, a gas bag, a system of reinforcing and load distributing members arranged circumferentially around said bag along the lines of maximum stress and a system of cable rigging connected to said members at the lower ends thereof, substantially as described.

2. For use in carrying out methods of raising sunken vessels, a gas bag, a plurality of cables arranged circumferentially of its longitudinal axis along the lines of maximum stress, flexible channels inclosing said cables and a system of cable rigging connected to the lower ends of said cables, substantially as described.

3. For use in carrying out methods of raising sunken vessels of the kind set forth. a gas bag, a cable located centrally between the ends of the bag and extending around it in a plane at right angles to the longitudinal axis thereof, a plurality of other cables spaced apart from one another and from said central cable located along the lines of the principal stress and a system of cable rigging connected to the lower end of all said cables, substantiallv as described.

4:. For use in carrying out methods of raising sunken vessels of the kind set forth, a gas bag, a plurality of cables arranged in pairs circumferentially of its longitudinal axis along the lines of maximum stress, a flexible channel inclosing a pair of said cables and a system of cable rigging connected to the lower ends of said cables, substantially as described.

5. Apparatus for carrying out methods of raising sunken vessels of the kind set forth comprising a gas bag provided with means for insuring that the internal pressure at the bottom of the bag does not exceed that of the water outside the bag at this place, a system of reinforcing and load distributing members arranged circumferentially around said bag along the lines of maximum stress and a system of cable rigging connected to said members at the lower ends thereof, substantially as described.

6. Apparatus for carrying out methods of raising sunken vessels of the kind set forth comprising a gas bag composed of multiply textile fabric and provided with a safety valve adapted to operate automatically in such a manner that in use the internal pressure at the bottom of the bag does not ex ceed that of the water outside the bag at this place, a plurality of cables arranged circumferentially of the longitudinal axis of the bag along the lines of maximum stress, flexible channels inclosing said cables and a system of cable rigging connected to the lower ends of said cables, substantially as described.

7. Apparatus for carrying out methods of raising sunken vessels of the kind set forth comprising a gas bag composed of multiply textile fabric and provided with a safety valve adapted to operate automatically in such a manner that in use the internal pressure at the bottom of the bag does not exceed that of the Water outside the bag at this place and a plurality of cables arranged in pairs circumferentially of the longitudinal axis of the bag and on the lines of maximum stress, a flexible channel inclosing each pair of cables and a system of cable rigging connected to the lower ends of said cables, substantially as described.

8. Apparatus for carrying out methods of raising sunken vessels of the kind set forth, comprising a gas bag composed of multiply textile fabric having one of the plies laid diagonally in relation to the other plies and the external surface of the bag made Waterproof by being treated with a waterproofing material, a safety valve fitted to said bag adapted to operate automatically to insure that the internal pressure at the bottom of the bag does not exceed that of the water outside the bag at this place and a system of reinforcing and load distributing mem bers arranged circumferentially around the bags along the lines of maximum stress and a system of cable rigging connected to the lower ends of said members, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I hereunto atfix my signature.

ALFRED RYAN.

It is hereby certified that in Letters Patent No. 1,364,646, granted January 4, 1921, upon the application of Alfred Ryan, of Oldham, England, for an improvement in Air-Bags and Salvage Methods for Raising Sunken Vessels and other Objects, errors appear in the printed specification requiring correction as follows: Page 2, strike out lines 76 to 79 and insert the Words damage to the bag A. M, M

are patches and M, M sits-pension patches provided on the bag A to assist in the manipulation of the bag before and after inflation; same page, line 81, for the Word piles read plies; and that the said Letters Patent should be read with these corrections therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Ofiice.

Signed and sealed this 15th day of March, A. D., 1921.

' M. H. COULSTON,

Commissioner of Patents.

[SEAL] 

